Art galleries, museums and exhibitions remain empty despite lockdown easing

THE UK's arts and creative industries continue to suffer despite the easing of lockdown restrictions, a recent study by Design Bundles shows.

Though popular attractions such as the British Museum have been reopening to the public since March of this year, the majority of Brits, that 93% say that they have not visited an art gallery, museum or exhibition over the past 3 months, according to YouGov research.

London is home to approximately 250 registered art institutions, so a reluctance to return to cultural hotspots may be due to hesitancy to use public transport such as buses and the tube in the wake of COVID-19.

53% of Londoners have expressed concerns about using the tube, with 48% also voicing health concerns around using London's buses.

There may be other factors at play, with more than a quarter of Brits indicating that they do not feel that the arts and creative industries; defined as including:- performing and creative arts, writers, museums and libraries; are important to the British economy.

In 2019 arts and culture contributed £10.47 billion to the UK economy, which corresponds to 0.5% of total UK economic output. There were an estimated 226,000 jobs in the arts and culture sector in 2019, 40% of which were based in London.

In addition, more than 50% of the country's population believe that British museums should permanently return artifacts to their country of origin.

Attendance to public attractions, exhibitions and galleries may be set to improve, however, following the recent lifting of various social restrictions.

British Museum attendance has previously been capped at 3,000 people per day, with the establishment maintaining safety measures such as:- hand gel stations, 1 way systems and certain galleries; 33 in total; remaining closed due to ventilation concerns. Certain restrictions have been lifted as of 19 July 2021 (such as the 1 way systems), but the museum is still asking attendees to book in advance and adhere to track and trace.

Despite the apparent reluctance of Brits to return to museums and galleries, the museum has continued to hold special events and exhibitions, such as their current headline exhibition:- "Thomas Becket, Murder And The Making Of A Saint."

A representative of Design Bundles  aid:- "There has been an understandable reluctance to return to our country's artistic and cultural attractions. 1 hopes that recent announcements from the government will encourage people to begin to cautiously resume their daily lives, and return to our country's cultural hotspots. The creative industries are a vital part of the public's leisure time and social interactions."

The research was conducted by Design Bundles, which offers high quality premium design resources and a marketplace which allows graphic designers to register and sell their products.
 

"AS an Independent Usborne Organiser it is my mission to get books where they are needed the most and to provide every child with the opportunity to fall in love with reading. I am aiming to raise £6,000 to provide children from some of the most deprived backgrounds with a book of their own that they can enjoy over the summer break. The books are suitable for children from newborn all the way to young adults. I am aiming to provide a range of titles to suit all different types of readers. Since 1975 KIND has been making a difference in the lives of thousands of disadvantaged children and families from across Liverpool and Merseyside. Having access to quality reading material is so important to these children; not only for their literacy development but also for their mental health. Books can provide an escape from what may be a stressful or difficult living environment. Every child deserves the opportunity to fall in love with reading; regardless of their circumstances. Every single donation will make a difference. Local businesses who donate will be acknowledged on KIND’s and my social media. Thanks in advance for every pledge, no matter how small; it all counts. To donate please visit:- JustGiving.Com" Christina Taylor, Christina Taylor Books.
 

FSB Merseyside and Cheshire's Michael Sandys, Area Leader for Liverpool City Region, comments on how businesses are faring and FSB's new:- '#MyHiddenGems' campaign. Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) quarterly Small Business Index (SBI) falls back slightly after roadmap delay, but growth and hiring aspirations strong; Debt, rising costs, skills shortages and international trade disruption all causes for concern among 1,500 respondents; UK's largest business group urges shoppers to respect business safety measures as mask and distancing requirements end in England.

FSB launches:- '#MyHiddenGems,' a new summer campaign spotlighting local cafes, restaurants and night time venues as Government announces new hospitality strategy. With businesses in England reopening this week, FSB is calling on shoppers to abide by the:- 'house rules' of small firms across England in light of research showing business owners are still positive about the future despite a delay to the ending of restrictions and mixed messaging around how to operate safely.

Half of small business owners (50%) surveyed in FSB’s quarterly Small Business Index predict that their business performance will improve in the next three months, compared 32% who expect it to worsen, according to the new FSB study of more than 1,500 firms. The UK SBI confidence measure has fallen to:- +18.6 in Q2, down from +27.3 in Q1 of this year, but up significantly from the -5 recorded in Q2 last year.

Growth and hiring aspirations are at high levels: 21% of respondents intend to increase staffing levels in the next 3 months, and 54% of respondents expect to grow their businesses, the highest proportion since Q1 2017.

Nearly 64% of small businesses surveyed said that operating costs had increased in the past quarter compared to last year, up 20% points from Q1 2021. 42% cite inputs, such as raw materials and components, as a main contributor to this increase, up 12 Percentage points on last quarter. Labour costs (36%), utilities (28%), and fuel (26%) are also frequently flagged as sources of rising outgoings as inflationary pressure takes hold.

The share of firms citing lack of access to appropriately skilled staff as a barrier to growth has soared to its highest level on record (37%), with the proportion of respondents citing it as a barrier up 18 % points compared to Q2 2019, before the Pandemic hit. Input costs are cited as a barrier to growth by 25% of respondents, up from 16% in Q1 2021 and just 11% in Q2 2020.

Amid mounting evidence that lockdowns have exacerbated the UK’s late payment crisis, 54% of respondents who successfully applied for credit in Q2 2021 did so in order to manage cash flow, up 9% points compared to Q2 2019. With emergency loan schemes now closed, 32% of those who applied for credit last quarter were rejected, the highest proportion since Q4 2015. 37% small businesses with debt now view their level of borrowing as unmanageable.

Elsewhere, new trading rules continue to be a source of pain for firms that do business internationally. Close to a quarter (23%) of exporters have stopped selling into the EU either temporarily or permanently. The overwhelming majority (92%) of importers and exporters have experienced shipping delays since April.

FSB Merseyside and Cheshire’s Michael Sandys, Area Leader for Liverpool City Region, said:- "As England fully reopens, small businesses are, in the main, well positioned to take full advantage of the opportunities on offer to them as the economy recovers. While restrictions have now been lifted, we're urging all shoppers to respect the house rules at each business they visit, as owners strive to keep customers and staff safe. The Government and Police should be getting the message across that firms will be supported if customers refuse to abide by their terms of doing business. Small businesses have invested time and money preparing for this reopening, swiftly adapting to help keep Covid numbers as low as possible. With our membership spread across the country, we are building a picture of how reopening has been going. With some of the more popular tourist hotspots overrun with visitors, other areas including big cities are experiencing much lower footfall than they would usually expect. FSB's new:- '#MyHiddenGems' campaign gives people the opportunity to shout about their favourite small firm, whether a café, shop, pub; anywhere you love that you want to share with others."

FSB's '#MyHiddenGems' campaign in the English Regions aims to shine a light on great small firms and help share their stories. '#MyHiddenGems' focuses on businesses in the tourism and hospitality sector, which has been particularly hard hit by the Pandemic; often the 1st to close their doors and the last to reopen. FSB members and all small businesses and sole traders are being invited to share their:- 'hidden gems' on social media using the hashtag:- '#MyHiddenGems.'

FSB's recent report A Menu for Recovery put forward a series of recommendations to help the sector recover including calling for a new hospitality and tourism strategy, overseen by a minister, an extension tp the hospitality VAT rate reduction to 5% until March 2022, and 100% business rates relief throughout the full financial year for businesses in England.

FSB has raised these issues at the highest levels of Government and is pleased that the ministers have now announced a new hospitality strategy, to be overseen by the Small Business Minister, Paul Scully MP. However, much more needs to be done to give small businesses a fighting chance in the coming weeks and months.

Michael Sandys added:- "Skills shortages and rising input costs should concern us all; anything which puts the brakes on small business recovery is bad news for the economy. Recent announcements around upskilling are welcome but will not be in place rapidly enough to provide immediate relief. The rising price of business critical insurance cover is another area of real concern, with firms struggling to access the policies they need to operate. Policymakers should be looking at ways to offset these spiralling operating costs; reducing employer national insurance contributions and taking forward the insurance recommendations we have proposed to the Treasury. The fact that ⅖ of small businesses with borrowings view their debt level as unmanageable strikes a warning note. Now that bounce back repayments are kicking in, we’re urging banks to reach out to customers to make them fully aware of their Pay As You Grow options. These facilities were made possible by the Government to help struggling firms. Lenders should remember that fact as collections start. Businesses are still trying to get across the full implications of a new EU / UK trade deal, which is taking effect by degrees. Without the big legal, logistics and HR departments at the disposal of large corporates, a sizeable number of small exporters have thrown in the towel, stopping sales to the EU altogether. We're encouraging the Government to reopen the SME Brexit Support Fund to help these firms get back to the international trade that is so often a driver of innovation and growth. Our late payment crisis; which was already destroying thousands of small firms a year before the Pandemic struck; has worsened through lockdowns. We'll be working closely with the new Small Business Commissioner on how to urgently readdress the widespread poor payment practices which have no place in a:- 'build back better' approach to economic recovery."